(RMC Athletics release)
BILLINGS – The Rocky Mountain College women’s basketball team gets back to Frontier Conference play this week with a pair of home games against top-10 ranked opponents. The Battlin’ Bears host No. 7 Lewis-Clark State on Thursday and then welcome No. 10 Montana Western on Saturday.
Both games are scheduled for a 5:30 p.m. tipoff in the Fortin Center.
Live video of all Rocky home games are available at YouTube.com/battlinbears. Both games this week will gave audio available on MTSportsCast.com. Live stats can be accessed at sidearmstats.com/rocky/wbball. Links for all live features are available at GoBattlinBears.com.
Rocky starts 2018 at 11-1 overall and riding a five-game winning streak. The Battlin’ Bears earned seven points in this week’s NAIA Top 25 Coaches’ Poll to sit among the other teams receiving votes at tied for 30th. They are 1-1 in Frontier play this season to sit tied for third with Montana Western and Carroll. Rocky is 3-0 at home this season.
Last weekend, the Battlin’ Bears picked up two wins at the Hampton Inn/Wells Fargo Green & Gold Classic. They began the event with a 92-55 win over Dickinson State on Friday. They came back on Saturday to down Bethesda 84-41.
The 11-1 start is the best record through 12 games in the 15 years of available records. The current five-game winning streak is only the fifth time a Rocky team has won at least five straight during the past 15 years. The most consecutive wins during that time is six straight set two times, including earlier this season.
Rocky begins the week averaging 76.1 points per game and shooting 45.4 percent from the floor. They lead the Frontier by making 9.1 threes per game and sit second in hitting 36.5 percent from beyond the arc. The team averages 18.0 assists per game with a 1.39 assist-to-turnover ratio. They lead the Frontier at 44.8 rebounds per game.
Defensively is where the Battlin’ Bears shine. They currently lead the NAIA in scoring defense at 44.8 points allowed per game and in field goal defense is holding opponents to 30.3 percent shooting. They also lead the nation with a plus-31.3 scoring margin while sitting third is 3-point field goal defense at 22.0 percent.
Mikayla Jones leads Rocky in scoring at 12.8 points per game and with 28 made 3-pointers. She has scored in double figures eight times with three 20-point outings. Jones has a made three in 11 of the 12 games this season with multiple threes in a game nine times. She ranks 31st in the NAIA by making 2.33 triples per game and 33rd at 41.2 percent from deep. Her 27 steals lead the team and place 48th nationally.
Brooke Jones adds 12.6 points per game and leads the Battlin’ Bears with 78 rebounds. She has scored in double figures nine times and has two games with 10-plus rebounds. Jones is third in the NAIA by shooting 61.4 percent from the field and she ranks 45th in the country by getting 5.1 defensive rebounds per contest.
Hailee Farstveet leads the team with 60 assists to average 5.0 per game to rank eighth in the NAIA in both categories. Justyn Juhl is 39th in the NAIA with 13 blocked shots. Alexi Smith is ninth nationally by shooting 48.2 percent from beyond the arc and Kiana Corpus is second in the NAIA with her 3.89 assist-to-turnover ratio.
